AFL Draft 2023: No. 1 pick Harley Reid baulks at claims he won’t last out west after heading to Eagles

West Coast’s new great hope Harley Reid has dismissed any talks of him not lasting in WA, pledging himself to the Eagles after they refused every offer for a chance at the young gun.

New West Coast hope Harley Reid says the talk about him not lasting on the other side of the country is “pretty annoying” as he pledges himself to the Eagles.

Reid was taken first in Monday’s draft after the Eagles decided to hold onto the No. 1 pick amid months of offers for the rights to the hyped midfielder-forward.

Wearing his new Eagles colours minutes after he was selected, Reid said he wanted to put “a bit of word out” that he was more than happy to be moving to Perth and that talk in the footy industry that he was a flight risk grated him all year.

“It was obviously pretty annoying at times when they say it and they haven’t even met you,” he said.

“To be honest it (the colours) is on me now and hopefully that puts a bit of word out that I am keen to go over there and get stuck into it.”

Pick 1 Harley Reid receives his jumper from Nic Naitanui. Pic: Michael Klein

The most hyped No. 1 pick in a generation, Reid said he was planning to head west to a club that has won just five games in two years with “not too much expectation for me”.

“It is pretty humbling but also motivation to be a superstar and get in there and earn respect off the teammates there and there is a great core group there,” he said.

Reid was handed the No. 9 jumper by retiring superstar ruck Nic Naitanui, a number also worn by Brownlow medallist Ben Cousins.

The handover wasn’t the first time the ruck met the youngster though, with Reid and Naitanui crossing paths earlier on Monday.

“This arvo I got back on the scooter to head back to my hotel and I got on the scooter and there (Naitanui) is, just out the front,” Reid said.

“So I pulled up on my scooter and just said ‘G’day’. It was pretty humbling but it was pretty cool.”

Reid broke with draft night tradition by wearing the logo of both local clubs in Tongala and Coates League side Bendigo Pioneers, paying tribute to the small Victorian country town where hundreds packed the footy club to watch the draft.

Harley Reid is presented the Allen Aylett medal. (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

“They put on a good function there, they have a new set of TVs,” Reid said.

A powerful midfielder who has a knack for going forward and kicking goals, Reid has long been likened to Dustin Martin and the youngster said he was ready to give Martin some of his own medicine with a trademark fend-off.

“I will have to test it out on him,” Reid laughed.

“He has obviously had that trademark on him, I have obviously looked at him, seen him and looked up to him and that (the fend-off) is something he has done really well.”

After Reid was taken first on Monday, North Melbourne snapped up Tasmanian Colby McKercher.

Gold Coast matched a bit from the Roos for Jed Walter next before the Roos then selected Zane Duursma with the fourth pick and Nick ‘The Wizard’ Watson went to Hawthorn at No.5.

NO MOVEMENT AT STATION IN RACE FOR REID

West Coast has revealed no new offers came through to snare Harley Reid away in the final two weeks leading into the draft and the bids for the No. 1 pick were good but not good enough.

Eagles list boss Rohan O’Brien confirmed offers from North Melbourne of pick No. 2 and “a couple of picks in the teens” and an offer from Melbourne of picks 6, 11 and a future first rounder were most tantalising for the rights to Reid.

But the Eagles decided a long way out that they were locked in on the highly touted midfielder-forward from Tongala and ended up taking him on Monday night.

Harley Reid in the famous number 9 West Coast jumper. Pic: Michael Klein

The Eagles refused to be moved by any offer for a shot at Reid. Pic: Michael Klein

“Really we were set early on and it was going to take something extraordinary to get the pick from us and now it is done we couldn’t be happier,” O’Brien said.

“When you weigh (the offers) up around the trades that get done in the trade period they are really good offers but we decided to stick with the player.

“They were really good offers, for a lot of players you probably have to really consider them and we did consider them.

“We think Harley is a player that is a little bit unique than maybe a few that have some through in other years.”

O’Brien said the Eagles did attempt to get back into the top 10 last night, dangling their future first round pick when West Australian defender Daniel Curtin was still on the board.

But Adelaide took Curtin with pick No. 8 after orchestrating a swap with the GWS Giants, freezing West Coast out.

West Coast’s 2024 first round pick could potentially land at the very top of next year’s draft given the club won two games in 2022 and just three this year.

West Coast now holds the first pick to kick-start tomorrow’s second round, often seen as a wanted commodity from other teams to trade.

O’Brien said he was ready to take more phone calls from clubs hoping to trade.

“We will potentially get some offers so like we did with the Harley stuff we will weigh it up against our order and see what the outcome is,” he said.

Originally published as AFL Draft 2023: No. 1 pick Harley Reid baulks at claims he won’t last out west after heading to Eagles